PBA: Meralco Bolts hang on versus Alaska Aces

(Updated 10:01pm) The Meralco Bolts relied on a big third quarter from their import Mario West to score an 84-74 win over the Alaska Aces, Tuesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, in the 2013 PBA Governors' Cup.

The Bolts moved over the .500 mark with the win, 3-2, creating a three-team tie for second place with Barako Bull Energy Cola and the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, while the Aces evened their record at 2-2, after previously picking up back-to-back wins.
 
Mario West led the Meralco charge with 32 points, 11 rebounds, and three steals. The prolific import scored 20 points in the crucial third quarter when the Bolts turned a two-point halftime deficit into a 13-point lead heading into the final quarter.
 
“Mario is an incredible athlete and he’s towing us right now even though we’re still not complete in terms of roster power,” said Meralco head coach Ryan Gregorio. “He was frustrated in the second quarter because he thought the referees were not calling fouls on him, but he got the calls in the third quarter. We took 41 free throws and that was a part of our plan.”

The Bolts made 28 free throws in the game with West going 14-of-21.
 
“It was good timing for us to play them,” Gregorio admitted. “They were playing their third game in seven days so we did our best to out-hustle them.”

Back-to-back baskets from Wendell McKines gave the Aces an early 7-2 lead. Inside baskets from Sonny Thoss and McKines then brought their lead up to eight points at 15-7 with 5:15 left in the first.
 
A jumper from Dondon Hontiveros gave Alaska a double-digit lead at 19-9 with 1:31 remaining in the first quarter. Rey Guevarra responded for Meralco by scoring five straight, to cut Alaska's lead in half at 19-14, prior to the end of the first quarter.
 
After falling behind by nine points, the returning Mac Cardona scored one of his patented hook shots to bring the lead down to seven at 25-18. Cardona added another hook at the 5:51 mark, followed by a triple, to shrink their deficit to just two points at 25-23.
 
Reynel Hugnatan and West then conspired to score six unanswered points to give Meralco a 31-25 lead with two minutes left in the second quarter.
 
Alaska head coach Luigi Trillo was whistled for a technical foul at the 1:19 mark of the second period, after an offensive foul called on rookie Calvin Abueva, his fourth foul of the game. West converted on the technical free throw, but Alaska responded with a 5-0 run to get within two, 32-30, heading into the halftime break.


John Wilson completed a rare four-point play at the 10:17 mark of the third to give the Bolts a 39-33 lead early in the third. The Bolts extended their lead to eight points after two free throws from West, as the former NBA player swooped in for a slam on the very next possession to give Meralco a 10-point cushion at 49-39.
 
The Aces finally got a triple from RJ Jazul to get within seven, 51-44. However Hugnatan and West, replied with layups to bring their lead back up to 11. West added a one-hander at the 2:23 mark of the third to build a 57-44 lead for the Bolts.
 
After struggling in the first half, West dropped 20 points in the third quarter, outscoring the entire Alaska team which only had 19. As a result, Meralco led 62-49 heading into the final quarter.
 
Jvee Casio tried to jumpstart a Alaska rally by scoring on drives to the basket. However, the Bolts refused to allow them back into the game. A Hugnatan jumper was followed by a free throw from West to give Meralco a 69-55 lead with less than eight minutes left in the game.
 
Back-to-back baskets from Wilson raised the Meralco lead to 16, but Alaska kept themselves in the game by going on a small 6-0 run, 73-63.
 
A Cliff Hodge tip-in at the 2:07 mark gave the Bolts a 12-point cushion but Alaska triples halved that, 77-71. Casio then fouled Chris Ross who managed a split.
 
The usually reliable Casio turned the ball over on the inbounds play, which led to another Alaska foul and another split on the line for Meralco, 79-71 with less than a minute remaining in the game.
 
The Aces tried to get back into the game by chucking up three's, but their long bombs refused to fall in. Two free throws from West sealed the game for the Bolts, as these gave them an 82-71 lead with only 40 seconds left in the game.
 
“In a conference like this, you cannot let your guard down,” said the winning coach. “Our goal is to just keep on climbing the ladder of success.”

Wendell McKines was limited to just 13 points in the game, far below his average. He scored 12 points in the first half and only managed one point the rest of the way. The Alaska import only had 10 looks at the basket, making three of these, while adding 10 rebounds.
 
“We really did a tremendous job on McKines,” Gregorio said after the game. “We didn’t give him any open looks and that was the key to the game.”

Jvee Casio added 12 points and four assists before fouling out, while veterans Sonny Thoss and Cyrus Baguio chipped in 10 markers each.

The Bolts were active throughout the ball game, out-hustling the Aces on most occasions. Meralco had more rebounds at 51 compared to 47 for Alaska. Their relentlessness also paid off as they were given 18 more free throw attempts. Meralco scored on 28 made free throws, while Alaska only hit 18 charities, a 10-point disparity, and the exact difference in the game.
 
“We came out with the right kind of energy. We kept our emotions in check. It’s always good to win over a good team like Alaska,” Gregorio added. - AMD, GMA News
 

The scores:

Meralco 84 - West 32, Wilson 15, Hugnatan 12, Cardona 9, Guevarra 7, Hodge 6, Reyes 2, Ross 1, Timberlake 0, Artadi 0, Salvacion 0

Alaska 74 - McKines 13, Casio 12, Thoss 10, Baguio 10, Abueva 9, Hontiveros 9, Espinas 4, Dela Cruz 4, Jazul 3, Ramos 0, Eman 0, Belasco 0

Quarter scoring: 14-19, 32-30, 62-49, 84-74